Game
by Extrinsical
Summary: At first they were friends. Then they were something similar to a brother and sister, but just as real. Then they were the best of best friends. Then a drunken stupor changed that. Like a game, one wrong move, and everything changed. Narusaku.
1. Chapter 1

Posted: 25/03/07

一

_**Game**_  
_Act 1:_

一

_She grunted. "Are boys all this - this heavy?"_

_One step forward. _

_Well, not really. Or at least, to her, he wasn't supposed to be heavy._

_Grunt._

_After all, she was the one with monstrous strength. A sixty - seventy kilograms boy was nothing. She did have carried bigger stuff before, like, say, rocks? The ones that was at least twice her size. And she was juggling it. With one hand._

_Second step._

_Huff._

_But then again, she wasn't really sober at all. _

_Another step. One hand reached out to slap the switch on the wall, and the lamp flickered dimly. He hadn't changed the light bulb yet. _

_She made a mental note to remind him tomorrow. If she remembered._

_She didn't notice the empty ramen cup lying innocently on the floor._

_Ug - oh. Uh-oh. Shit._

_Thunk!_

_A wince._

_"Ouch," muttered the chuunin._

_Sigh._

_"Dammit, Naruto." She tried pushing him off her, but he was sleeping like a dead log. The stench of alcohol was thick. His blond hair was tickling her chin. _

_She tried not to think about it. It was just the sake. Just the sake. She wasn't really sober herself, remember? _

_She slapped his face lightly, considering. If he doesn't wake up anytime soon, she will have to add some force to her light tapping..._

_"Gerhh..."_

_Ah. So he was still awake._

_"Naruto!" snapped the girl, shaking his shoulder._

_An incoherent mumble._

_A sigh. She wondered if she was doomed to stay like this until morning. Or at least until he comes back to his senses._

_"Sh-shagura-khan?"_

_Oh, he's drunk, alright. But he's awake. That's good. She breathed a sigh of relief. She didn't have to stay under him till morning after all._

_"Naruto. Get off me. You are heavy."_

_"Urh.."_

_She wondered if that command even made sense to his currently not-clear-mind._

_He pressed his palm to the cold floor, attempting to lift himself up. _

_Looks like it did._

_But then he slipped. Why in the world was there a puddle of water under his hand? "Whoa-"_

_Her eyes shut, and she braced herself for an incoming crash._

_Thud._

_"Oof."_

_The alcohol must be getting to her, because she certainly didn't feel any weight on her - more like a weight hovering above her. In fact, it seemed to be _

一

_Waitaminute. That 'oof' wasn't from her. She opened an eye slowly._

_And let out a little gasp of surprise; the other eye shot open. _

_She blinked, seeing the outline of a neck and a strong jaw. She felt a soft, steady tapping of heartbeats on her fingers. Her gaze lowered, and saw one of her hands pressed to the black and orange jacket. Her eyes traveled back up slowly. His whole body - even if not resting on her - was directly above her, two palms locking her in the middle where they pressed on the floor._

_Green locked onto blue._

_She didn't know how long she was staring into an endless depth of sky-blue eyes, one that held despair and hopelessness. Then he smiled._

_A smile so lonely, and so heartbreakingly empty. _

_At that instant, she could have sworn he looked like a fallen angel, gentle hues of blond highlighted by the soft light above his head._

_When he craned his head to the side slightly, she could not discern. When his face lowered, she did not realize._

_All she knew was his lips were crushing hers. _

_It was almost bruising._

_Her hold on his jacket tightened a little, almost as if she was ready to push him away._

_But her grip loosened..._

一

He stirred, half-awake now, but not too willing to leave the warmth and comfort of the bed. Snuggling deeper to the source of warmth, his hands draped over a soft - slightly sticky - smooth pillow that, curiously enough, radiated heat.

The thought of it weird, however, had yet to register in his otherwise still dead brain.

It had been a long time since Naruto Uzumaki had a peaceful slumber. Often times it had been haunted by disgusted eyes, hateful glares and memories that drilled loneliness into his mind endlessly, day and night. Even sleep wouldn't let him escape that; or the part where he saw himself in the nine-tailed demon fox eyes, killing and demolishing...

_The baleful moonlight accompanied screams and cries which had filled that dark night. _

_Anguish.  
Despair.  
Hopelessness.  
Rage.  
Destruction._

_He had watched, through the kyuubi's eyes, as it snarled and roared; spitting out hot, burning flames that turned even the most solid buildings into ashes. Ninjas' after ninjas' the kyuubi stomped down on, and Naruto could just feel the delight and glee it took in when the fox felt the squishy, bone-cracking sounds under it's sole... _

The phone rang loudly.

His eyes sprang open, jerking up as the sunlight peeking through from the closed curtain glared at him. A hand automatically lifted to his throbbing head, the other resting lightly on the pillow that radiated heat. There was a musky, slightly stuffy scent that wafted to his rather sharp nose, added with the smell of heat.

It wasn't really bad, actually, though it reminded the blond of air-tight rooms. Which was strange. Especially when his little apartment was usually airy and cool.

_Riing! RIIIING!_

The annoying, loud rings distracted his mind from the unfamiliar scent.

He groaned.

"Damn phone..."

"Blasted phone..."

There was a pregnant pause.

Naruto blinked sleepily. His imagination? He thought he had heard a feminine voice.

Oh well. No biggie.

The sixteen year old ninja felt a small movement beneath his hand that rested on the pillow.

Again, he blinked. He hadn't noticed before, but as his sharp senses returned, albeit slowly, he could feel it;

It was a continuous, steady throb that tapped on his palm gently...and though Naruto was sitting up, the warm, steady beats were slowly lulling him back to sleep.

_Riiiiiiiiinnng!_

Damnable phone.

He paused, eyes twitching in irritancy. But a little thought dawned on him, and he wondered. Loudly.

"Since when did I have a phone?"

A soft voice behind him mumbled. "Mom, get that - ," it stopped mid-sentence.

The blond blinked. That feminine voice, by all means, couldn't have belonged to him. He suddenly felt a lump in his throat, as he slowly turned...

And his gaze met equally surprised milk green eyes, shadowed slightly by bangles of lustrous pink hair.

He could recognize those green eyes anywhere, even from miles away. He knew the little spark of determination in that gaze, which often mingled with a little sorrow - ever since Sasuke left...

The lump in his throat grew bigger.

Sakura.

The steady beat under his hand had grown faster by tenfold, and Naruto, stupidly enough, looked down to investigate.

What he saw made his jaw go slack, eyes bulging open. He couldn't tear his eyes away from the mesmerizing beauty that captured all of his attention, making him fully alert; the weariness he felt before vanishing. Why hadn't he noticed before? He stared, enraptured, his hand hadn't been just resting on a _pillow._

"N..Na..."

His hand was resting on a breast, on a fully grown, matured body of a girl - woman, who had turned sixteen not too long ago.

His hand was resting on _Sakura's _breast.

"NARUTO!"

* * *

_A.N.:_

_Hmm. Can't really say I know where I am going with this. But eh.. anyway, this is one of my older stuffs I have written this a long while back, and ideas just sort of start popping up. I have some - though rather vague - scenes I'm thinking of for chapter 2, so that's how it is. _

_I doubt this is going to be very long, however. Possibly a span of 5 chapters or so, maybe. I won't dare to say how long it will take for me to produce readable stuff, though. And as far as this fic is concerned, I like angst and drama with just a little bit of comedy so things won't get so dark, so you can probably guess where this fic will head to. Predictable, maybe, but hey, life's like that._

_Hope this has been enjoyable, and frustrating enough for you to feel like strangling me. -flashes a grin-_

_Till next time.  
Eagle_


	2. Chapter 2

Posted: 03/04/07

一

_**Game**_  
_Act 2:_

一

The situation had never felt more awkward. And it was Naruto, damn it. Since when were they uncomfortable with each other?

Her head cracked.

Sakura winced. "Ah..."

She massaged her temples with her free hand. The thought of using chakra to kill the headache had not occured to her.

"Um, Sakura-chan?" The blond called hesitantly.

Despite herself, she tensed. He was next to her. When did he hang up on the phone?

When did he get near her without her sensing it, for that matter?

Her grip on the sheet she held up to her chest tightened a little.

That little movement did not escape Naruto's eyes.

"...here." He kneeled next to the bed, holding out a cup of water and a sealed pack of ten tablets. Most had been eaten, she noted absently, there was only three pills remaining. "For the headache, Sakura."

Her gaze traveled. He had already put on his pants, although shirtless. She tried not to look at his bare flesh.

Then she paused.

Sakura?

She glanced up into his guarded blue eyes.

Guarded, cautious, unreadable. Something sunk in her stomach.

It suddenly struck her that, somehow, somewhere along the way, things had changed between them.

He was never on guard around her. He never called her just Sakura. But that was the past. That was a few hours ago.

Her head throbbed.

Holding her head gingerly, she took the packet from him, digging a tablet out with a finger, and left the pack on the bed.

Pressing it on her tongue, she reached for the water, and drank it all, swallowing the pill. She hadn't realised how thirsty she was.

He took the cup from her gently, and left for the kitchen.

All of it was still sinking in for both of them, she knew.

When she literally screamed his name, he had stumbled off the bed, backpedalling with an expression of a deer caught in a headlight. She had been pretty sure her look mirrored his.

Then they stared at each other, disbelief and shock on their faces. For a few seconds, they had been silent, before the ringing phone jerked both of them out of their astonishment - and Sakura tore her gaze away from him as he scrambled to pick up the phone.

_"Who the hell is this?" He snapped into the phone._

_"..."_

_"Wha? Whaddya mean it's..."_

_"..."_

_"But that's.."_

Sakura zoned out the rest of the conversation between an agitated Naruto and the other person - whoever it was - on the phone then, and with forced calmness, thought back what happened.

She remembered. She had seen desire in those eyes last night. She didn't stop him.

He had touched her everywhere. Everywhere. With his hands, eyes, lips.

And she didn't hate it.

_Oh, god._

The throb at the back of her head dulled. Shaking her head in a try to clear her thoughts, she curled the sheet around her, stepped away from the bed, picked up her clothes, and locked herself in the bathroom.

Naruto hadn't said anything, but she could feel his eyes boring into her.

_God god godgodgodgodgod.._

She felt sore all over. Especially down there, in between her legs, and...

Knock, knock.

She jumped.

_"Sakura?"_ Naruto's muffled voice came from outside the toilet.

"Y-yes!" She felt something terrible churning in her stomach. Sakura. Not Sakura-chan. _Sakura._

_"...The old hag just called me to go to her office, so..." _

An awkward pause.

The pink-haired chuunin did not know if she wanted to thank Tsunade for her timely interference. He was still oddly silent, before she suddenly realised he was waiting for her reply.

"Ah, okay. I.." Words stuck in her throat. She pinched herself, willing the pain to clear her mind. "...I will see you later."

_"...Yeah."_

Feet shuffled to the other door with fading footsteps.

_Click._

Her tense shoulders relaxed slightly, and she let out a sigh.

Dressing quickly, her nose wrinking slightly at her crumpled clothes and odor of alcohol, she stepped out of the bathroom to the scent of...ramen?

Her eyes fell to the small dining table.

A cup of cooked instant ramen with a pair of chopsticks was there on the table, waiting for her. A set of spare keys, too.

Naruto..

一

The other raised an eyebrow at him. "Dude, you look horrible."

He was. There were dark rings under his eyes, his hear was even more mussed than usual, his clothes were wrinkled and crooked, alcohol literally radiated off him, and he smelled slightly of sweat and perspiration.

He grunted.

Kiba could smell it from a distance away, let alone a foot from him.

Akamaru let out a bark.

The dog-man paused. Then sniffed at him.

And sniffed again for good measure, ignoring the glower coming from the blond.

Then a sly grin formed on his face. "You dog! Who's the lucky girl?"

Actually, Kiba recognized the feminine scent on Naruto, but decided - perhaps wisely though he may not have realised it - to feign ignorance.

"Don't know what you're talking about," Naruto growled, sidestepping and walking - or stomping - into the Hokage's tower.

"Man, you are cranky. Kept you all night?"

Naruto stopped dead in his tracks, turned around, and snarled. "Kiba, one more word..."

Of course, Kiba wasn't impressed by the veiled threat. "Must have been good, huh? I mean, if you are this tired - "

"Kiba - "

"I'm curious, you know. How many times?"

"Kiba - "

"Did she scream?"

"KIBA, I WILL KILL YOU, BASTARD - "

He snickered, hopping onto Akamaru just before Naruto's punch landed on his face, and the duo dashed off.

"See ya later when you are not so cranky, Naruto!"

"KIBAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

一

Naruto had every intentions of chasing after Kiba, but a hand grabbed him by the collar and held him back.

He turned around, swiped at the offending hand and missed as it let go. The blond snarled.

"What the hell do you think you are doing, Neji?"

"Saving you from being pummeled to the ground by the Hokage." Like Kiba, the white-eyed man did not bat an eye at the dangerous growl forming on Naruto's face. "You got a meeting with Hokage-sama, Uzumaki. Get moving."

A pause.

"And," Neji said without missing a beat, "Perhaps you should tone down your_ activities _if it makes you dyspeptic in the morning."

For a moment, Naruto faltered. "Dyspep - what?"

Neji snorted in a way that told him to find out himself, gesturing towards the tower before disappearing.

Naruto scowled at the empty space before him, before stomping loudly into the tower, muttering curses under his breath.

Then he whirled around, and shouted at the empty space before him.

"Whaddya mean '_ACTIVITIES'_?"

一

Sakura sneezed.

That was the third time in a row. She frowned. Was someone talking about her?

She shook her head. She was sweaty, she was sore all over, and she needed a bath. She certainly did not want to wonder why someone would be talking about her. Her night before was considerably rough, and...

She flushed.

The pink haired girl glanced at the clock. It was late in the morning, and she needed to be at the hospital sometime soon.

She wanted to check up on her former sensei, too.

Here, her thoughts turned dark. Kakashi...

She gritted her teeth, trying to steer her thoughts away to elsewhere.

_None of that, Sakura. At least he's safe._

But not quite in one piece, a little voice murmured in her mind. Too close, she thought. Too close a call.

Sakura sighed.

She looked at the clock again, half-heartedly planning the schedule for the day, before picking up the keys on the table.

_First,_ she thought, her nose wrinkling, _a bath_.

She left Naruto's apartment, locked the door, stuffed the keys into her pouch, and jumped up to the roof as her tired muscles protested.

_A long, hot bath,_ Sakura amended, heat rising to her cheeks involuntarily.

She certainly did not notice Ino watching her with two raised eyebrows.

* * *

_A/N:_

_Heh. For those who are wondering what dyspeptic means, look up a dictionary. I went through the trouble of digging up a thesaurus to find a suitable word for all-formalities-Neji to use, you know. -snickers-_

_On the other hand, I'm not entirely sure I worked out Neji's and Kiba's scene too well. Actually, I'm not even sure if this chapter turned out right. Which brings me to a sore point._

_I think I'm in need of a beta reader again. Volunteers, anyone?_

_The way Naruto and Sakura acted is rather anti-climatic, I know. And while I'm sure some of you may have thought Sakura's first reaction is to punch Naruto into the orbits, well...kind of doubt it. I mean, she is hotheaded in the past, but maturity and age tends to mellow things a little. And there's also the little phone ringing thing that prevents both of them from reacting too much._

_As for the Sakura-chan to Sakura, I will leave you to imagine what you will for now. The hints I've put in is subtle but not that subtle - or at least I hope I have portrayed it that way - and the way I wrote it may make you misunderstand the reason why there is no -chan in the way Naruto called Sakura now. Whatever you think is the reason for his sudden change, it may not be what you think it is. But like I said, think what you will. XD _

_Hope this was an enjoyable chapter, people._

_Till next time.  
Eagle_


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